After the loss of her sister ship Gneisenau, the good fortunes of the Scharnhorst ran out; while intercepting a Murmansk bound Allied convoy in December 1943, the Scharnhorst was attacked by two British warship groups. Putting up a valiant fight against hopeless odds, the Scharnhorst was finally sunk after sustaining 15 torpedo hits. Out of 1968 crewmen, only 36 survived.